This handout gives three extracts from Gothic fiction: ‘Frankenstein’, ‘Dracula’ and ‘Great Expectations’. I used this with a Year 9 group who did a mini-essay on how Dickens creates mood in the final extract, and I am also planning to ask them to use two of the extracts, alongside a non-fiction extract, to synthesise ‘What is Gothic fiction’?

Using extracts from Robinson Crusoe and Treasure Island, students created these proof reading tasks which I've compiled into one booklet with an answer booklet as well. Each task includes a range of SPAG errors and could be used for Key Stage 3 or 4. You could use the tasks singly as starters, or set the booklet as a homework challenge, or complete in class with a competitive element.

This is a simple idea for a classroom/corridor display to inspire secondary school reading. I’ve collected images of book covers onto a Word document to be printed in colour then cut down to size, mounted and laminated for display, in a layered effect. I’ve included children’s classics, adult classics, YA fiction, Middle-grade fiction, and tried to reflect a wide range of genres.

This was created by students as a class revision guide, with slides on characters from the novel, some key themes and contextual information. The slides are colourful and could also be printed for display.

6 aspects of Golding’s style to look for in an extract question: dialogue, characters, mood, relationships, actions, symbols.

I used this with a Year 7 MAT group. They read the blog post ‘10 reasons to take a survival course’ then answered the reading questions. They then planned and wrote an essay on ‘Should schools teach survival skills’.

Created by students, each slide gives key points and quotes exploring a theme in Doctor Faustus. Themes include magic and the supernatural, blood, salvation, good vs evil, social status.

Using 4 images to represent 4 key aspects of context for Lord of the Flies, this PPT helps students to understand what historical or social contextual details can help them with the essay question on the text. I asked the students to draw a simplified version of the icons into their books to remind them to include each aspect in their essays on ‘Lord of the Flies’. The images help them to remember these key points.

These proof-reading starters were created by a MAT Year 7 group. They were each given a section of ‘Treasure Island’ chapter 3 and asked to create 10 errors, then list at the bottom a key for what to look for eg. 3x spelling errors, 1x full stop. I have used these as starters for Key Stage 3 classes.

There are GCSE style questions to answer on the ‘voluntourism’ article and then a comparison grid to fill in to compare that article with the other one on volunteering abroad. Students can then write a 10-mark style answer : ‘Compare the attitudes of the writers to volunteering abroad.’

One side of the postcard has an image of the ‘learning pit’ and the other has questions for students to answer about their own learning.

I created this for a Year 9 group to start preparing them for GCSE style comparison questions. The ‘David Copperfield’ extracts have questions which require them to use P.E.E. and inference, to answer in developed paragraphs. The extract from ‘Holes’ can then be introduced for comparison purposes.

Key characters in Pride & Prejudice, with points for wealth, wit, influence and attraction so that students can see how characters compare to one another in their social status. These make for a nice classroom display too.

A handout with the story of Theseus and the minotaur, with some questions aimed at Year 7 students using P.E.E (point, evidence, explain), and a handout with an extract from ‘The Hunger Games’ called ‘The Reaping’ so that students can discuss how Suzanne Collins used Theseus and the minotaur to inspire her novel. You could then ask them to adapt other myths into a modern context as a creative writing task.

Suitable for Ks2 and Ks3 and low ability Ks4 Four extracts from Dickens’ original text with blanks _ where punctuation should be, and a key at the end of each line with the punctuation marks required eg. 2x ! or 2x" Answer sheet included

This Powerpoint looks at creating a question to structure a speech around, and uses Just a minute as fun table activity and potentially whole-class game.

Two extracts from ‘The Bourne Identity’ , each with a ‘How does the writer create tension’ question, and an accompanying Powerpoint to help students annotate and look for devices.

Created for a top set Year 9 group to start preparing them for GCSE ‘How’ questions. Teaching them what to look for in an extract question using ‘Great Expectations’ and a question on mood and atmosphere.

Year 9 inference square activity using an extract from Sebastian Faulks’ Birdsong. War thematic unit.

Works well as a homework challenge over the holidays. The challenge leaflet contains a list of classic novels suitable for Year 7 students to read. They have to choose one (many are free to download on Kindle), read it and then fill in the leaflet with their thoughts and get a parent or guardian to sign it. I collect them in after the holidays and then everyone who has completed it gets a raffle ticket for a prize draw. It’s been a great way to get kids reading more challenging books and I also use a system where they can use it throughout the year, getting a different colour to ‘upgrade’ each time so that if they read all the books on the list they become a ‘master reader’ and get an additional prize.